A/N: Merry Christmas everyone! I hope everyone has an excellent holiday! I really enjoyed writing 'Thankful', so I decided to write a Christmas story in the same little universe. This takes place the Christmas after that Thanksgiving, so Tessa is still seven and Adam is still five. Enjoy! :)
Disclaimer: I do not own NCIS; I only own Tessa and Adam.
"It's Christmas it's Christmas!"
Jenny and Jethro Gibbs were awoken at seven thirty am on December 25 by their two children running into their room and jumping on their bed. Tessa's red curls flew in her face as she pounced on her dad, who caught her easily.
"Merry Christmas Daddy!" she said, hugging him tightly. He laughed, kissing her head as he hugged her back.
"Merry Christmas sweetheart." he said, ruffling Adam's curls as he grinned at the little boy. "Merry Christmas little man."
"Merry Christmas Daddy. Hi Mommy." Adam said, cuddling up next to Jenny, burrowing his head into her shoulder. Jenny smiled, touching the little boy's auburn curls softly as she kissed his nose.
"Merry Christmas Adam. Merry Christmas Tessa." she said, tickling her daughter's side gently. Tessa giggled, shying away from her fingers into her dad's arms. Jethro tickled her as well, grinning at her laughter.
"Stop Daddy, stop!" she said through her giggles, twisting away from his fingers. Adam giggled as well, his green eyes alight with happiness and laughter. "Please, please!"
"Jethro, let her go. She has presents to open!" Jenny said, tickling Adam gently, reveling in his giggles. She touched her baby bump gently, smiling at the fluttering in her belly. Jethro's gaze softened, and he leaned over, kissing her softly, grinning when Tessa and Adam 'eww'-ed them. "Okay kids, go and get your slippers on. Daddy and I will meet you at the top of the stairs."
"Okay Mommy." Tessa said, sliding off the bed with Adam. They both scampered out of the room, and Jenny turned to Jethro, sighing with contentment.
"Merry Christmas Jen." Jethro said, leaning over and kissing her again, his hand straying to her bump. She covered his hand with one of hers, smiling as they broke apart.
"Merry Christmas Jethro. She's awake this morning." she said softly, looking down at her bump. "I love you."
"I love you too sweetheart." he said, kissing her again. "C'mon, let's go meet the kids."
Twenty minutes later, they were in the living room, watching contentedly as Tessa and Adam excitedly looking through the presents under the tree. Jethro brought Jenny a cup of tea, which she took with a smile before leaning into his side, inhaling the smell of his coffee.
"I miss coffee." she said with a sigh, frowning slightly distastefully at her tea. Jethro chuckled quietly, kissing her temple gently.
"It'll be worth it Jen. Just a few more months."
"Oh I know it'll be worth it. Tessa and Adam were worth it." Jenny said, eyes on her children. "Only another four months. I can wait until April."
"Mommy look, this one is for you!" Tessa said, coming over with a small, square-shaped present wrapped in silver paper. Jenny took the box with a smile, glancing at the label.
"Thank you Tessa. This one is from your daddy to me." Jenny said, looking over at her husband, who merely smiled, his face revealing nothing.
"Open it Mommy, open it!" Tessa said eagerly, jumping up and down and she grinned at Jenny.
"Well, I guess I can. Only one each though, we have to wait for everyone else to get here." Jenny said, and Tessa's eyes lit up before she sprinted to the tree where Adam was already searching through, no doubt looking for the biggest present addressed to him. Jenny turned to her husband, raising an eyebrow. "Jethro, you didn't have to get me anything."
"Jen, it's been almost a decade since we got married. I couldn't ignore that." Jethro said, sitting up slightly.
"That's what an anniversary is for Jethro." Jenny reminded him softly, one of her fingers playing with the edge of the paper.
"Just open it Jen."
Jenny slid one finger under the edge flap, lifting it up and ripping the paper off to reveal a small, white box. She pulled the top off of that to reveal a white velvet jewelry box, flashing her back to the day he'd proposed. She glanced up at him, eyes wide, before opening the box to reveal a diamond eternity ring nestled in the velvet interior.
"Jethro…" Jenny said, one finger touching the silver band. "Jethro, it's absolutely beautiful."
"I just wanted you to know how much all these years have meant to me." he said, taking the ring out of the box and sliding it onto her finger, settling it on the ring finger of her right hand. Jenny's eyes glistened with tears, completely overwhelmed.
"Thank you Jethro. I love you." she said softly, slipping her arms around his neck as she leaned in to kiss him. He kissed her back softly before pulling away when Tessa and Adam giggled.
"You were right Daddy; every kiss does start with Kay!" Tessa said, making Jenny laugh as she rolled her eyes.
"What are you teaching our children Jethro?" she asked, shaking her head at him. He rolled his eyes, sighing quietly.
"She wasn't supposed to repeat that." he said, looking a tad sheepish as he scratched the back of his neck.
"Of course she wasn't." Jenny replied, curling back into his side as Tessa tore into her chosen present, squealing when she revealed the Wedding Barbie she'd had on her list since July.
"Mommy, Mommy, Santa got me just what I wanted!" Tessa said, blue eyes alight with excitement.
"It looks like he did, didn't he?" Jenny said, smiling at her daughter. "I'm sure Bella will love playing with that with you."
"She will!" Tessa said, grinning. "She and I can play after we open the rest of the presents, right Mommy?"
"Of course sweetheart. When your aunts and uncles get here, we can open the rest of the presents."
"When are they going to get here?" Tessa asked, bouncing over to them and settling at Jenny's side, brushing her thick curls out of her face.
"Around eight fifteen, sweetheart." Jenny said, glancing at Adam, who was still searching for the present he wanted to open. "Adam, sweetheart, you will get to open all of them later. Just pick one for right now."
"But Mommy I don't know which one to open!" Adam said, looking stumped as he glanced between two presents.
"How about the one with racecar paper Adam?" Jethro asked, pointing to one on the far side of the tree. Adam raced over to it, picking it up.
"Santa has racecar paper Mommy!" he said, his green eyes wide as he ripped into the paper. "Mommy it's the Matchbox racing set I wanted!"
"Santa must have known how much you wanted it Adam." Jenny said, smiling to herself, thinking of all of the stores she had gone to before finding that racing set.
"And he put racecar paper on it! Santa is the coolest!" Adam said, causing Jenny and Jethro to laugh. "Well, behind you and Daddy."
"Well, I'm glad we're on your cool list sweetheart." Jenny said, ruffling his auburn curls softly. "Are you two hungry at all? How about something small before everyone else gets here?"
"Can I have one of the cinnamon rolls we made yesterday Mommy?" Tessa asked, and Adam nodded.
"Sure, let's head into the kitchen." Jenny said, allowing Jethro to help her stand before taking his hand and following Tessa and Adam into the kitchen.
"I'll get the rolls Jen. You get their drinks." Jethro said, squeezing her hand before turning to Tessa and Adam, ruffling their hair before grabbing the cinnamon rolls off the counter. Jenny got their drinks before they all settled at the table.
"Mommy these taste really good." Adam said, his mouth covered in frosting.
"Well, because you two made them." Jenny said, tweaking his nose before wiping off the icing from his cheeks and chin. "How do you like them Tessa?"
"They're delicious Mommy." Tessa said, smiling. Just as Jenny was taking a drink of her orange juice, there was a knock on the door.
"I'll get it." Jethro said, pushing himself up off of his chair and walking out of the kitchen.
"I hope its Aunt Abby and Uncle Tim!" Tessa said, bouncing in her chair. "I want to show Bella my doll!"
"Well we'll have to wait and see sweetheart." Jenny said, smiling at her daughter. "Adam, how did you manage to get frosting on your ear?"
"Idunno." Adam said, shrugging. Jenny rolled her eyes, wiping off the sticky icing.
"You are just like your father."
"Well, I'll take that as a compliment." Jenny turned at the sound of her husband's voice, shaking her head at him. "Abs and McGee are here with Bella and Taylor."
"Okay kids, Aunt Abby and Uncle Tim are in the living room. Remember, inside voices please."
"Yes Mommy." Tessa said, sliding off of her chair and running into the living room. "Aunt Abby!"
"Mommy, when is Uncle Tony going to get here?" Adam asked, getting off of his chair slowly and walking over to her.
"He and Aunt Ziva will be here soon I'm sure Adam." Jenny said, brushing her son's soft auburn curls out of his green eyes. Jenny knew how much Adam adored Tony; the little boy looked up to his godfather.
"Okay. I'm going to go and see Uncle Tim." Adam said, leaving Jenny and Jethro alone in the kitchen. Jethro helped Jenny stand before kissing her forehead gently.
"How you holding up babe?" he asked, cupping her cheek gently.
"I'm doing okay; I'm not too tired yet. After presents and breakfast, Tessa and Adam will crash and we can all take a nap before dinner at Ducky's." she answered, pressing her face into his hand. "Early bedtime for them tonight."
"Sounds like a plan Jen." Jethro replied, running his thumb along her cheekbone. "C'mon, let's go make sure we still have a living room."
"Merry Christmas Gibbs, Jenny!" Abby said, smiling when she saw them, waving to them. A sandy-blonde haired toddler was glued to her hip, her chocolate brown eyes wide as she gazed around the lit-up room.
"Merry Christmas Abs." Jethro said, nodding to Tim, who stood next to Abby, helping his seven year old daughter out of her coat. "Merry Christmas Bella."
"Merry Christmas Uncle Jethro!" Bella said, her black hair in two braids and her green eyes bright with excitement. "Hi Aunt Jenny!"
"Merry Christmas Bella." Jenny said, smiling at the little girl.
"Bella, Bella, look at what Santa brought me!" Tessa said, and the little girls ran off to play with the new doll.
"How's Taylor this morning?" Jenny asked Abby, looking at the toddler that was still gazing around the room.
"She's a little overwhelmed, I think. So much excitement." Abby said, touching her daughter's cheek softly. "Tim had to calm Bella down on the ride over."
"Tessa is so excited to see her." Jethro said, glancing at the two girls. Adam had taken Tim over to show him his new racing set, and the young agent seemed completely at home with the little boy.
"Bella wouldn't stop talking about seeing Tessa all yesterday and on the ride over." Abby said, brushing back Taylor's hair. "They really are best friends, aren't they?"
"Well, they have known each other their entire lives." Jenny pointed out, glancing at the two giggling second graders.
"They fit well." Jethro said, nodding. Then, there was another knock on the door, and Jethro walked over to the door, opening it to reveal Tony and Ziva.
"Merry Christmas Gibbs." Tony said, arms fully with a squirming two-year old boy.
"Merry Christmas Tony, Ziva. Hey Isaiah, Arianna." Jethro said, opening the door to allow them inside.
"Merry Christmas Jenny." Ziva said, hugging her friend tightly. Since transferring from NCIS to a more stable job, Ziva didn't get to see her former partner as often. "How have you been?"
"Busy, but I've been good. We'll have to talk later." Jenny said, squeezing the Israeli's hand. "How are Isaiah and Arianna?"
"Isaiah is a handful, and Arianna is as patient as can be." Ziva said, patting her four-year old daughter's soft brown hair. Her hazel eyes glowed, and Arianna pressed her face into her mother's waist, giggling shyly.
"You get more beautiful every time I see you Arianna." Jenny said, smiling at the little girl.
"Thank you Aunt Jenny." Arianna said, blushing. "Where's Adam? I want to show him my new book."
"He's over there by the tree. I'm sure he'd love to see your book." Jenny said, pointing to where Adam was looking at his racing set. Arianna raced off, sitting next to Adam, who looked eagerly at the book Arianna showed him.
"Merry Christmas Jenny." Tony said, coming over and kissing her cheek gently, arms still full with his son. "Isaiah, calm down, please."
"Momma!" the little boy said, his black curls falling into his chocolate brown eyes as he reached for Ziva. The Israeli took the little boy who immediately curled into her, tucking his head under her chin.
"I swear Z, you have the magic touch." Tony said, scratching his head as he shook his head at his son.
"It's also called a mother's touch Tony." Jenny said, touching the younger man's arm gently as she smiled at him.
"Must be." Tony said, slipping one arm around his wife's waist and kissing her temple. Jenny smiled at them for another moment before finding her own husband and slipping her arms around him, pressing her nose into his back.
"Hi." she said softly, peeking her head around his shoulders to kiss his cheek.
"Hey." he replied, squeezing one of her hands gently before turning around, enveloping her in a hug. "Everyone's here. Ready for presents?"
"If everyone else is, I am." she answered, leaning forward and kissing him softly. He returned it easily, one hand caressing her back softly.
"Merry Christmas Jenny." he whispered in her ear, holding her close.
"Merry Christmas Jethro." she whispered back, pressing her nose into his neck.
There was no better way to spend the holidays than with your family.